On the night of New Years Eve this year, there was an incident of violence that occurred at a party which left six people stabbed and/or beaten in the Reynoldstown neighborhood of Atlanta. One man, Luke O’Donovan, was taken to the hospital with multiple bruises and also stab wounds on his back, was arrested. The police and media narrative, based on the words of those present at the party, states that Luke left the party angry, returned with a knife and, as we’ve seen portrayed in recent coverage of mass shootings in the U.S., returned to attack those who enraged him.

The Support Luke Defense Committee and Atlanta Anarchist Black Cross, however, have been working to change that narrative. Friends, families and Allies of Luke claim that Luke was actually the target of a homophobic attack by a group of young men, and succeeded in defending himself and maybe saved his own life before police came. This week, we speak with Esme of the SLDC about Luke and Luke’s case, and how folks can support him.